Publications

In Germany, workers' interests are represented by four large trade union
organisations which regularly publish membership figures. In descending order
of size these are:

At the end of July 1999, a second bargaining session was held between
representatives of the Greek General Confederation of Labour (GSEE) and of
employers' organisations, for the purpose of discussing a reduction of the
working week to 35 hours without loss of pay. The parties agreed to set up a
joint committee to consider the matter.

In a recent high-profile incident, a Muslim woman of Lebanese origin was
rejected for employment by Denmark's two largest supermarket chains because
she refused, if employed, to remove the headscarf that she wore according to
Muslim tradition. The woman concerned, Maria Mawla, brought the matter to to
attention of the press in late July 1999. The national supermarket chains
concerned - the Danish Consumer Cooperative (Forenede Danske Brugsforeninger,
FDB) and Dansk Supermarked- refused to employ Muslim women in headscarves to
work at check-out desks or other visible places in their outlets. They
claimed that: individual headgear is contrary to their ways and customs;
headscarves are unhygienic and not compatible with the stores' principles
concerning uniforms; and the presence of staff in headscarves may put off
many customers.

Much comment has been passed on the changing gender composition of trade
union membership in the UK (UK9712184F [1]) and recent membership figures
underline these trends. The 1998 Labour Force Survey indicated that union
membership amongst women had increased by 60,000 on the previous year. Union
density amongst women in the UK has stabilised at 28%, and women make up
almost 39% of the UK's total union membership.

[1] www.eurofound.europa.eu/ef/observatories/eurwork/articles/industrial-relations-undefined/the-trade-unionist-of-the-1990s

Under an agreement signed in July 1999, telework is to be introduced in the
Italian public administration, initially on an experimental basis.
Participation will be voluntary and teleworkers will be guaranteed the same
rights and opportunities as other workers.

In August 1999, Dutch trade unions were angered by the latest evidence of
increases in senior management salaries far above those awarded to employees
covered by collective agreements, and the FNV union confederation thus
threatened to sabotage the Dutch consensus and consultation system (the
"polder model"). A promise by the VNO-NCW employers' association to urge its
members to support a moderate wage increase has seemingly warded off the
crisis.

Euro-FIET held its annual meeting of representatives of European finance
workers' trade unions in Portugal in May 1999. The main themes were
globalisation and the consequences of the euro single currency. The event
also gave Portuguese unions the opportunity to express their views on these
issues.

Historically, the German Social Democratic Party (Sozialdemokratische Partei
Deutschlands, SPD) and the German socialist trade unions, as opposed to the
Christian and liberal unions, have the same roots in the labour movement of
the second half of the 19th century. Since then, the Social Democrats and the
trade unions have maintained close links.

As Greece endured a heatwave during August 1999, the GSEE trade union
confederation issued guidance on the measures which must be taken to combat
heat exhaustion among workers, while the construction workers' union issued
its own special recommendations.

A new paper from the Irish Congress of Trade Unions (ICTU), which maps out
"new ways" for trade unions to deal with challenges posed by the new
millennium, suggests that even if the social partners fail to agree a
centralised agreement to replace the current three-year Partnership 2000 [1]
(P2000) national agreement (IE9702103F [2]), "partnership" remains a viable
alternative to adversarialism. The paper, entitled /Challenges facing unions
and Irish society in the new millennium/, was unveiled at the ICTU's
two-yearly conference which took place in Killarney on 6-8 July 1999
(IE9907285N [3]).

[1] http://www.irlgov.ie/taoiseach/publication/p2000/default.htm
[2] www.eurofound.europa.eu/ef/observatories/eurwork/articles/undefined/social-partners-agree-three-year-national-programme
[3] www.eurofound.europa.eu/ef/observatories/eurwork/articles/ictu-conference-sets-scene-for-talks-on-new-deal